


We're Gonna Need A Bigger Bucky

by rinnwrites



Series: California Dreamin': A Beach Bums Verse [4]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: California Boys, Exasperated Bucky Barnes, Humorous Dismemberment, M/M, Outrageous Embellishment of Fishtales, Shark Fights, They're Un...believably Extra, Tony Stark Bingo 2018, Tony Stark is an Unreliable Narrator, Trolling Tourists, beach bums
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-08
Updated: 2018-06-08
Packaged: 2019-05-19 14:06:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,235
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14875175
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rinnwrites/pseuds/rinnwrites
Summary: A couple of tourists want to know how Bucky lost his arm....so Tony tells them.orTony Stark Bingo - T5: Attacked By A Creature





	We're Gonna Need A Bigger Bucky

**Author's Note:**

  * For [wakandan_wardog](https://archiveofourown.org/users/wakandan_wardog/gifts).



> This is my first contribution to what promises to be an epic collaboration between myself and the incomparable wakandan_wardog! Keep your eyes peeled for more Malibu!Babes...

“What happened to your arm?”

Tony’s eyes lit up, and it was all Bucky could do not to literally bang his face on the bar in front of them.  _ Here we go again. _

“Well you see,” the genius started, his face the picture of delight as he turned his whole body to face Marla and Dave - a couple of middle aged tourists who had no idea what they were getting into - setting his cocktail on the bar to allow full use of his hands. 

“My boyfriend here is a surfer. I’m talking, like, the best you have ever seen. He can really handle anything out there on the waves....”

There was a time that Tony’s glowing commentary would bring a blush to Bucky’s face, but by now he’d heard this story, every wacky version of it, so many times that he was really just nonplussed by the declaration.

The tourists just seemed bemused as Tony became animated in the face of a question not exactly directed at him. 

The two of them, Tony and Bucky, did this a lot. They’d become regulars at this little seaside bar and the tourists came and went. There were days that they’d keep to themselves, and days they were a little more chatty. 

The question about Bucky’s arm was all too common on the chatty days.

It used to make him bristle, spiral into the dark thoughts of what  _ had _ happened to his arm, losing the real one, the evil it’s replacement had done for Hydra, only to be blown off again by the very man who sat by his side.

Tony knew it made him uncomfortable, or that it had once upon a time, and that was where The Story came in. It grew and changed each time Tony told it, and what was once a cover story to make Bucky feel better had turned into a grand and miraculous tale of survival. 

“So he’s out on his board one day, the sun is shining, the weather is gorgeous, it’s  _ Malibu _ for God’s sake, and I’m watching from the shore. It’s one of my favorite pastimes, right, honey?”

Bucky gave an obliging nod at that, his face an all too familiar combination of fondness and exasperation. He crossed his arms on the bar and hunkered down for the story, absently tapping his flesh fingers against the tougher skin-mimicking surface of his prosthetic forearm.

“Out of nowhere, I kid you not, the most massive storm clouds I’ve ever seen roll in. It basically goes from day to night in only a few seconds, like something you’d see in a movie. The water gets choppy, tossing him and his board around like they’re  _ nothing _ . And I’m panicking, because what am I supposed to do from the shore, I can’t get to him!” Tony continued, throwing his arms about to act out the scene while the tourists listened, rapt at his tale. 

They seemed like a nice couple, Bucky almost felt bad for them, but it was a pretty rude question to ask, so he let it play out, tearing his eyes away from where Marla has a strawberry daiquiri stain on her pale blue top in favor of watching Tony and the excited light in his eyes. 

“I’m thinking to myself, ‘He’s going to drown!’ because that’s the worst thing I can imagine…” Tony exclaimed, pressing a hand dramatically over his heart as Dave made a noise of anxious agreement. Tony was  _ loving _ this audience, and dropped a hand to Marla’s shoulder for the next bit, leveling her with a very serious look, “and then I see it,  _ through the wave _ , you know, like those horrifying pictures you see online.”

Marla, the poor woman, would be gripping her pearls were she wearing any and her eyes, full of terror, danced back and forth between Bucky and Tony.

“Tell them what it was, babe.” Tony said with an elbow to Bucky’s ribs, trying, as always, to drag his companion into the retelling of this tall tale.

He faltered for a moment, “Oh, uh, yeah, it was a shark, like twel-”

“A SHARK!  _ Fourteen feet _ long, at least!” Tony blurted, cutting him off. “This thing...I don’t even know how it could have existed in nature, had to be genetically modified or something. It made JAWS himself look like a guppy.”

Bucky just grinned, perfectly happy to hand the reins back to the master storyteller. He took a sip of his drink and nodded along as the tale continued. 

“I honestly thought - and I feel bad about this - that it was the end for him, there’s no way to survive that. It was on him in a second, knocked the board out from under him, and then the biggest teeth I’ve ever seen were clamping down on his arm, right through the bone, wasn’t it, Buck?”

“Right through the bone.” He affirmed, rubbing at his scarred shoulder a little bit for added effect. (It wasn’t lost on him the delighted thrill that went through Tony at that.)

“A lot of people, well basically anyone, would have gone into shock at that. It’s a  _ pretty big deal _ to get bitten by something out of a horror film, right? But Bucky….you won’t believe what he did, Marla.”

The woman was listening, wide eyed and shook her head, “What did he do?” she asked, her voice breathy and concerned. 

“He turned right around with his good arm, and he  _ punched the thing! _ ” he punctuated that sentence with a dramatic punch in the air, like he was socking out God himself. “Right in the face, Marla, It was  _ unbelievable _ .” 

Bucky looked down, curtain of hair covering his face to give the appearance of embarrassed modesty as he laughed silently,  _ unbelievable was right. _

“Oh my Lord!” Dave exclaimed quietly, looking back and forth between the two men “What did it do?”

“Well it clearly realized that it was no match for my man. That one punch had him running scared, but the bastard managed to take the arm with him. It was all pretty fast after that, Buck managed to ride the board to shore and I got him to a hospital, and the rest is well…” He trailed off with a shrug, dropping a hand on Bucky’s prosthetic forearm, only to have Bucky pick it up and place a kiss on the knuckles. The story of attaching and adjusting to the new arm became a little too real for them to share with strangers. 

“Wanna take a walk down the beach?” Bucky suggested casually, not minding the tourists’ company, but ready for a little time alone with Tony. 

Tony nodded, smiling softly before looking back to Dave and Marla, “It was a pleasure, enjoy your vacation.”

The tourists, still a bit awestruck, nodded absently, as the men stood to leave. 

Tony made eye contact with Stella, the bartender, and tilted his head towards the couple, silently letting her know to add their food and drink to his tab, it was the least he could do for the entertainment they’d provided him this evening.

Bucky dragged him from the restaurant, slowing as they hit the sand and instinctually fell into step with one another. 

The moonlight lit the white sand and their tanned skin glowed with the reflection of it. 

After a moment, Bucky broke the silence, “fourteen feet, really?”

“Yeah, well, twelve was getting boring.”


End file.
